US guests moved by Chinese hospitality: 'China will remain in our memory for a long time'
Editor's Note:
2022 marks the 50th anniversary of President Nixon's visit to China and the issuance of the Shanghai Communiqué, the first joint communiqué issued by China and the United States, which established the guidelines for the development of bilateral relations, especially the one-China principle. It has become the political foundation for the normalization of China-US relations and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The Global Times interviewed five Chinese witnesses based in Shanghai, the city where the Communiqué was issued, recalling their role in the visit by Nixon five decades ago.
Here is the story of Xia Yongfang, former director assistant of the Shanghai Municipal Foreign Affairs Office, who participated in the reception of the US delegation to China in 1972.
Xia Yongfang, 81 years old, is the former director assistant of the Shanghai Municipal Foreign Affairs Office. She participated in the reception of the US delegation to China in 1972 and still remembers the Western media's curiosity about China.
The Western media, especially from the US, wanted to interview more Chinese people. For example, "they asked about individual's living conditions, salaries, taxes and retirement age," Xia recalled, adding that "they would ask about where the wet markets were and where the Chinese saved money."
Xia said that she still remembers that a reporter went into the kitchen at a farmer's house and opened the lid to see what they had to eat.
At that time, the US reporters said that they did not have time to eat or sleep but only to report about China, Xia said. "It was an exaggeration, but it showed that they valued these interview opportunities and they were eager to report about China," Xia recalled. Some reporters said that after chatting with Chinese people, they saw their confidence and self-esteem, as well as the trust in government policies, according to Xia.
Then Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security, Alexander Haig, paid a visit to China in preparation for President Nixon's trip in January 1972. A Shanghai time-honored food company was responsible to make nine kinds of candies with exquisite packages as gifts to the members of the delegation led by Haig.
But in China at that time, it was not easy to produce so many candies quickly, Xia said. "Some US guests jumped with joy when receiving the candies," Xia said, noting that they felt the warm hospitality and said that "China will remain in our memory for a long time."
2022 marks the 50th anniversary of President Nixon's visit to China and the issuance of the Shanghai Communiqué, the first joint communiqué issued by China and the United States, which established the guidelines for the development of bilateral relations, especially the one-China principle. It has become the political foundation for the normalization of China-US relations and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The Global Times interviewed five Chinese witnesses based in Shanghai, the city where the Communiqué was issued, recalling their role in the visit by Nixon five decades ago.
Here is the story of Xia Yongfang, former director assistant of the Shanghai Municipal Foreign Affairs Office, who participated in the reception of the US delegation to China in 1972.
Xia Yongfang Photo: Global Times
Xia Yongfang, 81 years old, is the former director assistant of the Shanghai Municipal Foreign Affairs Office. She participated in the reception of the US delegation to China in 1972 and still remembers the Western media's curiosity about China.
The Western media, especially from the US, wanted to interview more Chinese people. For example, "they asked about individual's living conditions, salaries, taxes and retirement age," Xia recalled, adding that "they would ask about where the wet markets were and where the Chinese saved money."
Xia said that she still remembers that a reporter went into the kitchen at a farmer's house and opened the lid to see what they had to eat.
At that time, the US reporters said that they did not have time to eat or sleep but only to report about China, Xia said. "It was an exaggeration, but it showed that they valued these interview opportunities and they were eager to report about China," Xia recalled. Some reporters said that after chatting with Chinese people, they saw their confidence and self-esteem, as well as the trust in government policies, according to Xia.
Then Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security, Alexander Haig, paid a visit to China in preparation for President Nixon's trip in January 1972. A Shanghai time-honored food company was responsible to make nine kinds of candies with exquisite packages as gifts to the members of the delegation led by Haig.
But in China at that time, it was not easy to produce so many candies quickly, Xia said. "Some US guests jumped with joy when receiving the candies," Xia said, noting that they felt the warm hospitality and said that "China will remain in our memory for a long time."
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